As a result of the high cost and environmental considerations of traditional dry cleaning, there have been recent introductions into the marketplace, worldwide, of products designed to "freshen" dry cleanable clothes at home either in a washing process or in the drying process. Thus, for example, Siklosi, et al, U.S. Pat. No. 5,547,476 issued on Aug. 20, 1996 discloses a home dry cleaning process whereby a carrier sheet releasably impregnated with solvents such as butoxy propoxy propanol, 1,2-octanediol as a wetting agent, water and an emulsifier is placed in a plastic bag with soiled garments and tumbled in a hot air clothes dryer. Using the Siklosi, et al "dry cleaning process," the garments are cleaned and refreshed. Davis, et al in U.S. Pat. No. 5,681,355 issued on Oct. 28, 1997 discloses a dry cleaning process conducted in a hot air clothes dryer using a containment bag. In U.S. Pat. No. 5,681,355, the bag is constructed using heat resistant polymers such as nylon to avoid unanticipated hot spots in the dryer; and the bag retains its integrity and can be reused in subsequent dry cleaning operations.
A need has arisen for processes which give rise to de-wrinkling as well as freshening and/or aromatization wherein no heat or little heat is required, the fragrance performance is improved, and in general, the process is relatively easy to use at home.
The use of sponges in conjunction with clothing treatment processes is known in the prior art. Thus, in U.S. Pat. No. 4,824,582 issued on Apr. 25, 1989, dryer-added fabric conditioning articles such as sponges are disclosed utilizing alkyl amine-anionic surfactant ion-pair complexes as fabric conditioning agents. It is indicated in U.S. Pat. No. 4,824,582 that the compositions thereof can contain polymeric soil release agents and fabric softeners. In the method of U.S. Pat. No. 4,824,582, damp fabrics are commingled with the conditioner active and other optional components, e.g., fragrances, in automatic laundry dryer and are provided with a soft, antistatic finish concurrently with the drying operation. It is further indicated in U.S. Pat. No. 4,824,582 that the fabric conditioning agents are preferably employed in combination with a dispensing means adapted for use in an automatic dryer. At column 11, lines 1-9 of U.S. Pat. No. 4,824,582, it is indicated:
"One such article comprises a sponge or porous material releasably enclosing enough fabric conditioning composition to effectively impart fabric care benefits during several cycles of clothes. Such a substrate will have a weight ratio of fabric conditioning agent to dry substrate on a dry weight basis ranging from about 10:1 to about 0.25:1. This multi-use article can be made by filling, for example, a hollow sponge with about 20 grams of the fabric conditioning composition." PA1 (i) a substantially anhydrous hydrophilic water-activatable, expandable sponge substance having a volumetric expandability factor of from about 1.3 up to about 10.0, having a discrete geometric shape, a thickness along the z axis in the range of from about 0.05 inches up to about 2.0 inches, an average dimension along the x axis of from about 1 inch up to about 6 inches, an average dimension along the y axis of from about 1 inch up to about 6 inches, a surface area of from about 3 square inches up to about 150 square inches and having sufficient porosity to retain from about 0.25 up to about 2.0 grams of a hydrophobic perfume oil; and PA1 (ii) contained within the interstices of said sponge substance and absorbed therein from about 0.25 up to about 2.0 grams of a substantially anhydrous hydrophobic perfume oil intimately admixed with from about 0.25 up to about 2.0 grams of at least one substantially anhydrous fragrance substantivity-fabric relaxing agent selected from the group consisting of dialkyl dimethyl quaternary ammonium salts, imidazolinium quaternary salts, diamidoamine quaternary salts and monomethyl trialkyl quaternary ammonium salts, PA1 (i) Artificial sponges made from cellulose derivatives such as viscose, subjected to a pressure of 100 lbs per square inch and to a temperature of about 90.degree. C., whereby the treatment reduces considerably the thickness of the sponges without increasing their surface dimensions as disclosed in United Kingdom Patent Specification No. 539,785 of Sep. 24, 1941, assigned to Sponcel Ltd. and Cyril V. Barker and abstracted in Chemical Abstracts, 1942 at 4337(6); PA1 (ii) Chlorovinyl resin sponges produced according to the process disclosed in Belgian Patent Specification No. 448,061 of Dec. 31, 1942 (Pirelli Societa per Azioni), abstracted at Chemical Abstracts, 1945, column 1571(7) (Volume 39); PA1 (iii) Cellulosic sponges (cellulose acetate, propionate, butyrate and mixed esters) produced according to Haney and Martin, U.S. Pat. No. 2,372,669 of Apr. 3, 1945, the specification for which is incorporated by reference herein (abstracted at Chemical Abstracts, Volume 39, column 3668(1-5); PA1 (iv) Artificial sponges formed from organic esters of cellulose and/or polymerized vinyl acetate produced according to the process of Taylor and Gibbins as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 2,223,538 of Dec. 3, 1939, the specification for which is incorporated by reference herein; PA1 (v) Reinforced natural and artifical sponges which are impregnated substantially throughout with a dispersion of rubber as disclosed by Kraft in U.S. Pat. No. 2,257,911 of Oct. 7, 1942, the specification for which is incorporated by reference herein (abstracted at Chemical Abstracts, 1942, column 597(4); PA1 (vi) Sponges produced as a result of the reaction of cellulose with a carboxymethylating agent, whereby a "lightly" carboxymethylated cellulose is formed as disclosed by Courtaulds PLC in PCT Published Patent Application No. 95/15342 published on Jun. 8, 1995, the specification for which is incorporated by reference herein; and PA1 (vii) Cellulose sponges produced by admixing a cellulose solution in an aqueous tertiary amine oxide with a pore former and a foaming agent and then subjecting it to conditions resulting in a decomposition of the foaming agent and the foaming of the cellulose solution whereafter the foamed cellulose solution is brought into contact with water to precipitate the cellulose as disclosed in the specification of PCT Published Patent Application No. 97/23552 published on Jul. 3, 1997, the specification for which is incorporated by reference herein (assigned to Lenzing Aktiengesellschaft). PA1 (i) adding water to the sponge article (or a plurality of sponge articles, e.g., two or three) described, supra, in a weight ratio of water:sponge article of from about 1:5 up to about 5:1 in order to form a hydrated article or a plurality of hydrated articles; PA1 (ii) providing an automatic clothes and linen dryer having a "no-heat" ("fluff" cycle) which operates at from about 20.degree. C. up to about 30.degree. C. at atmospheric pressure and/or a "low-heat" cycle which operates from about 30.degree. C. up to about 50.degree. C. at atmospheric pressure; PA1 (iii) placing the clothing and/or linens into said automatic clothes and linen dryer; PA1 (iv) placing said hydrated sponge article(s) into said automatic clothes and linen dryer; PA1 (v) setting the dryer to operate for a designated time period (.DELTA..theta.).sub.1 on the "no-heat" ("fluff") cycle and/or for a designated time period (.DELTA..theta.).sub.2 on the "low-heat" cycle; PA1 (vi) operating said dryer for the time set for the "no-heat" ("fluff") cycle and/or the "low-heat" cycle (wherein the total in-dryer time is: .DELTA..theta.=[(.DELTA..theta.).sub.1 +(.DELTA..theta.).sub.2 ]); and PA1 (vii) removing the clothing and/or linens from the dryer. PA1 (i) providing a water-free, quaternary ammonium salt-free and fragrance-free compressed, water-activatable and expandable substantially anhydrous sponge article, shown to be produced in the prior art as set forth, supra; PA1 (ii) intimately admixing a hydrophobic fragrance with at least one substantially anhydrous fragrance substantivity-fabric relaxing agent which is, in the alternative, a dialkyl dimethyl quaternary ammonium salt, an imidazolinium quaternary salt, a diamidoanine quaternary salt or a monomethyl trialkyl quaternary ammonium salt to Form a quaternary salt-hydrophobic fragrance mixture; and PA1 (iii) immersing said substantially anhydrous sponge article in the quaternary salt-hydrophobic mixture, whereby from about 0.2 up to about 5 grams of fragrance is absorbed into the interstices of said substantially anhydrous sponge article. (In the place of the step of immersing the anhydrous sponge article in the quaternary salt-hydrophobic fragrance mixture, the hydrophobic fragrance mixture may be sprayed or rolled onto the substantially anhydrous sponge article whereby from about 0.2 up to about 5 grams of fragrance is absorbed into the interstices of said substantially anhydrous sponge article.) PA1 (i) providing a water-free, quaternary ammonium salt-free and fragrance-free compressed water-activatable and expandable substantially anhydrous sponge article, shown to be produced in the prior art as set forth, supra; PA1 (ii) intimately admixing an anhydrous lower alkanol (e.g., ethyl alcohol, isopropyl alcohol and the like) with at least one substantially anhydrous fragrance substantivity-fabric relaxing agent which is, in the alternative, a dialkyl dimethyl quaternary ammonium salt, an imidazolinium quaternary salt, a diamidoamine quaternary salt or a monomethyl trialkyl quaternary ammonium salt to form a quaternary salt-lower alkanol mixture; PA1 (iii) intimately admixing the resulting quaternary salt-lower alkanol mixture with a hydrophobic fragrance in order to form a quaternary salt-lower alkanol-hydrophobic fragrance mixture; PA1 (iv) immersing said substantially anhydrous sponge article in a quaternary salt-lower alkanol-hydrophobic fragrance mixture, whereby from about 0.2 up to about 5 grams of fragrance is absorbed into the interstices of said substantially anhydrous sponge article; and PA1 (v) physically separating said lower alkanol from said substantially anhydrous sponge article by means of performing the unit operation of evaporation on said substantially anhydrous sponge article. PA1 (i) U.S. Pat. No. 5,316,689 issued on May 31, 1994 (Classification: Class 252, Subclass 92), title: "TOY SOAP CONTAINING COMPRESSED SPONGE WHICH POPS OUT DURING USE"; and PA1 (ii) U.S. Pat. No. 4,881,915 issued on Nov. 21, 1989 (title: "DINOSAUR EGG"),
At column 18, line 67, it is indicated that 1.3 weight percent of "perfume" can be included in a dryer-added sheet substrate composition."
The problem of freshening clothing using fragrances in conjunction with clothes dryers is well known in the prior art. Thus, U.S. Pat. No. 5,094,761 issued on Mar. 10, 1992; U.S. Pat. No. 5,102,564 issued on Apr. 7, 1992; and U.S. Pat. No. 5,234,610 issued on Aug. 10, 1993 disclose the use of an effective amount of perfume/cyclodextrin complex in application to a fabric that is preferably at least partially wetted. In one method disclosed, a perfume/cyclodextrin complex is applied to a fabric in an automatic laundry dryer. It is further disclosed in these patents that the perfume/cyclodextrin complexes are preferably incorporated into solid, dryer-activated fabric treatment (conditioning) compositions preferably containing fabric softeners, more preferably cationic and/or nonionic fabric softeners. It is further indicated that volatile perfume materials including those materials that are commonly associated with "freshness" can be applied to the fabrics in "an effective way" and that clay provides protection for the perfume/cyclodextrin complexes.
A need exists for providing results such as those obtained in U.S. Pat. No. 5,094,761, U.S. Pat. No. 5,104,564 and U.S. Pat. No. 5,234,610 wherein perfumes which are not complexed can be delivered to dry cleanable garments without the use of heat and without the perfumes being complexed with such materials as cyclodextrin and at the same time rendering the resulting garments wrinkle free.
Our invention has, in an unexpected, unobvious, advantageous manner, fulfilled the needs as set forth, supra, in the fabric de-wrinkling/aromatization and/or freshening area.